The European Commission has proposed a budget of €175 billion for Horizon Europe in the EU budget for 2028–2034. By comparison, €93.5 billion is available in the current 2021–2027 funding period. In addition, the EU funding programme for research and innovation will be more closely connected to the new European Competitiveness Fund. This raises not only the question of the size of the budget, but also what role research should play in Europe’s future competitiveness strategy and what EU research funding should be used for.

Going forward, Horizon Europe is not only intended to fund excellent research, but also to contribute more strongly to the competitiveness of the EU. Research and innovation are to be more closely linked to the EU’s strategic priorities. These include areas such as digitalisation, decarbonisation, health and biotechnology, as well as defence and space. At the same time, Horizon Europe is to continue to cover the full range from basic scientific research to the development of new technologies.

The focus on competitiveness raises the question of how strongly research funding should be guided by political and economic priorities in the future. If funding is directed towards strategically important areas, this may affect the scope for research whose results and potential applications cannot yet be foreseen. The research community is therefore calling for scientific quality and the freedom of research to be adequately protected in the new programme as well. The European Parliament likewise emphasises the importance of scientific excellence and an independent research agenda as central elements of Horizon Europe.

Who decides on the priorities of the research programme is another key point in the negotiations. The Council wants to give the Member States a stronger role in this process. The European Parliament rejects this approach in its current form and calls for the research agenda to continue to be determined primarily by scientific criteria rather than political priorities.

The positions also differ on the budget. The Commission has proposed €175 billion for Horizon Europe. In its current negotiating position, the Council has provided for €167.8 billion, while the European Parliament is calling for €200 billion.

The Council and the European Parliament must now bring their positions together. The Council already adopted its partial negotiating position on Horizon Europe in June, on the basis of which negotiations with Parliament have begun. At the same time, the final financial allocation will be decided as part of the MFF negotiations. The European Parliament is expected to present its position on the individual programmes in November. An agreement on the MFF as a whole is being sought by the end of 2026.